Lin Zhanxi, inventor of Juncao, a type of grass that is used to grow edible mushrooms. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

China's technique of growing Juncao, the herbal plant used in the growing of edible mushrooms, has contributed to global poverty reduction, agronomist Lin Zhanxi said at the Delegates' Passage before the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China on Sunday.

Lin, the chief scientist of the National Juncao Technology Research Center and a professor at Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, started to cultivate the grass in 1983.

The technique was later promoted from East China's Fujian province to other areas in the country and has even reached countries across the world.

Juncao alleviated 17,700 farmers from poverty in Northwest China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region.

The technique has been promoted to 106 countries and regions around the world.

Twenty years ago, villagers in the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea began to learn the localization of this modern biological technology with the help of Chinese agronomists.

After the demonstration planting of Juncao grass was successful in Papua New Guinea, villagers shouted "Juncao, China!" to express their excitement, Lin said.

Many people in the South Pacific, Latin America and African countries have shaken off poverty through growing Juncao grass and mushrooms, he added.

More than 12,000 Chinese experts have been trained to promote the technique worldwide, contributing Chinese wisdom to the achievement of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, Lin said.

Lin Zhanxi explains Juncao. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Lin Zhanxi (second from left) checks the growth of Juncao at a Juncao base in Liancheng, Longyan, Fujian province in June, 2022. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]